Informed Consent
by Seldavia
Summary: Link agrees to a dubious truce when his battle with Ganondorf ends in a draw. The terms of the truce have strings attached, and Link's trust in Zelda is about to be greatly tested, as well as his wit and his strength. Power has a way of laying claim, but the Hero of Time belongs to nobody, least of all the Demon King.
1. The Truce

Link silently cursed as he stumbled, the Light Arrow careening off into the far wall. He strung his bow again in one fluid motion, but it was already too late. Ganondorf shook off the crackling magic that had incapacitated him and stood, flinging another ball of energy in Link's direction.

Link could feel his arm muscles flagging, trembling ever so slightly as he exchanged his bow for his sword and hit the sizzling ball back to its source. He did his best to set his mind on the threat in front of him and nothing else, willing his mind to wander to neither past nor future. It had worked in every battle in every Goddess-forsaken dungeon up to this point; he prayed that it would work in the final and most important fight.

The spell rang against his sword as he hit it back, his arm recoiling against the force and pain shooting from his wrist to his shoulder. Thrice more he swung his sword more like a club, forcing back the assault and feeling pins and needles traveling up his arm.

It connected! He leaped forward across the chasm, stumbling a little on the very edge. He raised his sword over his head and hammered like mad down on the man below him, feeling steel ring against armor as the stricken sorcerer raised his arms to protect his head. Link felt his blade connect only once, a bit of unprotected flesh near the elbow, and then the Evil King's fist flew upward into a glancing blow on the side of the jaw.

Link spun on his heel and leaped back, slipping and grabbing the edge of the crumbling tower just in time. Hearing mad laughter behind him, he heaved upward until his shoulders screamed in pain and missed being slammed by angry magic by milliseconds. He ripped the bow from his back and nocked an arrow, the bright flash of Light illuminating the insane grin of the man in front of him. He could feel the blood throbbing in his stricken jaw.

Out of potions of any kind, Link began a tug-of-war with his own mind and body, willing it to keep together until this last foe finally fell. And yet the unwanted thoughts kept teasing their way into his brain. _What are you going to do when you're out of magic power for your arrows? What are you going to do if he hits you so hard you can't get back up again?_

He fired his arrow, then cursed under his breath as the precious light magic shot past Ganondorf and into the wall just behind and to the right. He switched back to his sword, hoping to make do with whatever Ganondorf threw at him.

The dark sorcerer hadn't spoken since they began their battle in the giant organ room. He kept his gaze on Link, eyes focused and showing no sign of flagging. Link tried to avoid his eye as much as possible; the malice within was as strong as a fist to the face, and there was something else there, something that made Link's spirit quail every time their gaze locked.

Suddenly Link slipped, and fell hard on his sword arm. He could not conceal his grimace of pain, and out of the corner of his eye he could see Ganondorf's face light up in anticipation. Link jumped to his feet and raised his arm to hit back, but the ball of magic knocked the sword right out of his hand. The Master Sword skittered across the cracked tile, and as he chased it he could feel rather than see the expression of bloody triumph on his enemy's face.

Link grasped the sword, felt his fingers grip hard around the hilt. But it was too late. He had just enough time to straighten and turn toward his foe, when the ball of crackling energy hit him full in the chest.

His body seized up, sparks popping in his eyes. The smell of burning cloth and hair. He felt his back connect hard with the floor, and then his hand being jerked upward. His marked hand.

He felt as if his entire body was being ripped apart as the Goddess's blessing was torn from him, and then fell into darkness.

* * *

"Link…please wake up."

Link's eyes fluttered open, and he felt the unmistakable taste of blue potion on his tongue. The first thing he saw when his vision cleared was Zelda's troubled face. He smiled, then frowned when her expression didn't change to match his own.

"What happened?" He was alive, so they must have won. He couldn't imagine still being in one piece if Ganondorf had claimed victory.

She managed a half-smile. "The Triforce has returned to the Sacred Realm." But her face fell immediately afterward. "Unfortunately, it has left us with some loose ends to tie up."

Link heard a snort above and slightly behind her. He pulled himself into a sitting position, then flinched and instinctively reached for his sword when he saw the man standing there.

Ganondorf stood with arms folded, watching the both of them with a detached interest. Link noticed his sword at Zelda's side and his hand flew out to grab it, but she caught his wrist.

"He could not claim the full Triforce, even with both of us incapacitated. The Goddesses have deemed him unworthy of their blessing, save for Power, which he rejected in a fit of pique when denied."

Link looked up to catch Ganondorf's reaction to this pronouncement. The tall man merely turned his head away, leaving Zelda to the explanations.

"So…what happens now?" Link asked, unsure how to confront this problem. He never doubted that Zelda would have a solution.

"We have held counsel, Hylian Queen and Gerudo King," Zelda explained carefully. "With the madness of Power lifted, he has agreed to a truce. Hyrule cannot suffer continuous war, and he knows that…but there are conditions."

Link felt afraid to ask, but he did so anyway. "What are they?"

Here Ganondorf spoke up. "I can't allow a hostile force such as yourself to stay within the hands of my enemy. You will leave the Master Sword in the Temple of Light, and you will switch your alliance to me."

Link's fists clenched. "I won't raise my blade against Zelda!"

"You won't have to," Ganondorf said dryly. "There will be plenty of work for your blade in the Gerudo Desert." His eyes had a strange glint that Link couldn't place. "We can always use another swordsman."

Link turned to Zelda. "I don't understand."

She put her hand on his shoulder in a reassuring gesture, but an untranslatable urgency stirred behind her eyes. "The Light within you cannot be corrupted. I am asking you to go with him, to satisfy the terms of the treaty that will keep Hyrule safe."

"I won't ask you to raise your blade against any Hylian, Gerudo, Goron, Zora, or Kokiri," Ganondorf explained. "You will serve me, but it will be to the mutual benefit of both kingdoms."

"Do you agree to the terms?" Zelda asked, her expression pleading, and yet something about her screamed that she was trying to convey something important, something that was going over his head.

Panicked, Link demanded, "What happens if I don't?"

Ganondorf answered for her. "Then I will continue my campaign to keep all of Hyrule under my rule. Needless to say, the heir to the Hyrulean throne has no place in my plans."

Link turned back to Zelda's beseeching expression. Was this the source of her fear? No, she seemed almost…afraid for him, not her. Yet Ganondorf seemed to be bending over backward to assure the both of them that this request, strange as it was, would free them of his threat. He could be lying, of course. He'd done it before, with the previous king…

But what choice did they have? Link had already promised Zelda his life in return for Hyrule's safety, just by taking on this quest. If his life had been the terms requested, he would have given it up gladly, but Ganondorf wasn't asking for it. Of course, there would be little Zelda could do if Ganondorf simply throttled him and led another attack.

Link turned his cold blue gaze to Ganondorf. "If you're thinking of striking again after disposing of me, you can think again. It won't happen."

Ganondorf raised his head and stared down his long nose at him. "If I really wanted to dispose of you, I wouldn't have allowed Zelda to revive you."

Floored, Link turned to Zelda, who nodded. What on earth was the Gerudo King playing at?

Ganondorf harrumphed in impatience. "I'd rather have Hyrule's greatest warrior…on my side instead of hers. Is that really so hard to take?" His eyes gleamed strangely in his pause, but whatever message it contained was lost on Link.

"Do you agree to the terms?" Zelda asked again, more urgently now. Her expression hadn't changed, suggesting that they both knew something he didn't. What else had they discussed while he was out cold on the floor?

Regardless, there was really nothing he could do except trust in Zelda, as he had all this time. She had led him as well as she could to his goal. What did it matter if her path took another direction?

Link nodded. "I do."


	2. The Infantilization of Link

Replacing the Master Sword in its plinth, Link looked up at the hazy gray light filtering in through the windows of the Temple, asking the Goddesses for guidance. None of this felt right to him, none of it. But Zelda had been chosen to bear Wisdom, even if she no longer carried the Triforce crest, so surely she must know something he didn't.

He walked out of the chamber to see both Zelda and Ganondorf waiting for him. As soon as he crossed the threshold, Zelda gathered up the Spiritual Stones, and the door closed behind him.

"What are you going to do with those?" Link asked her. "Their keepers are gone."

Zelda flinched slightly, but kept her voice steady. "I will find new allies within the races to bear them for us, and reforge bonds between Hyrule's rulers and its people."

Link wondered what Mido would do with a Spiritual Stone. Bury it in the backyard, probably. He glanced up at Ganondorf, expecting him to demand one, but the tall man simply frowned down at him. "You shield stays here," Ganondorf ordered. "You'll learn how to use Gerudo scimitars, like the rest of us. You learned quickly enough how to handle a straight sword, I'm sure you'll manage. Leave everything else behind as well, save your bow and arrows."

Link instinctively turned to Zelda, expecting her to object, but she merely nodded and held out her hand. Link gave her the Lens of Truth, and set everything else he carried on a pile at her feet. Then he stood and fingered the string of his bow awkwardly, waiting for her to speak.

"I'll wait outside," Ganondorf said finally, turning to leave. "Don't be long."

Link watched him disappear through the entrance, then turned to Zelda with a pleading expression. She kept her head down, staring at her folded hands. A sense of panic welled up within him, something he had never felt before, and his breath came quick.

After a few moments she glanced up, and stared into his eyes with a pitying expression. Finally, with a somber frown, she pulled something from one of her pockets. It was a small glowing stone, with a simple leather strip tied around it in the form of a necklace. She held this out to him without meeting his gaze. "This is a small form of the Gossip Stones, which I used to communicate with Impa. You can contact me with it, but only in the case of a dire emergency."

Link took the Stone from her, waiting for a good-bye or at least a glance in his direction, but she said nothing, keeping her gaze on the floor. Finally he kneeled, placing his hand with the Stone at his heart. Then he rose and walked quickly to the door. Neither one looked back.

Ganondorf stood outside with Epona, and his own horse which he had conjured up from Goddess knows where. He mounted his own horse and waited for Link to follow.

Link did so, and as they trotted quickly out of the ruined Castle Town square, Link allowed himself a tiny bit of self-pity.

* * *

Cries of joy erupted from the Gerudo Fortress as their King came within sight of the guards. Gerudos streamed out of the fortress and swarmed Ganondorf at the gate. Link stayed off to one side, watching the scene with detached disinterest. Ganondorf spoke at length in Gerudo, which Link didn't understand, but he could hazard a guess at its meaning.

Finally Ganondorf turned and gestured toward Link, speaking in Hylian. "And here is Hyrule's finest warrior, traded to us in exchange for our truce with the Hyrulean Royal Family. Know that the Hyrulean Knights will never trespass on our land again, as the only one of their kind who could stand against us, now stand with us!" He then assumedly stated the same thing in Gerudo, for the benefit of those who did not speak Hylian. A few of the women sneaked giggles behind their hands and their veils, and Link wondered if the Gerudo King had added a few extra words.

Ganondorf dismounted and turned back to Link, gesturing for him to do the same. He summoned one of the women to his side and introduced her. "Link, this is Aveil. She will show you to your chambers and get you settled in." Then he turned his back on them and addressed the cheering mob once more.

Aveil took Epona's halter with a smile. "Let me show you to the stables first. Your horse looks like it could use just as much rest as you do."

Hoping to make a friend, Link said, "I remember you. You were the one that gave me the Gerudo token."

Her smile widened, her eyes crinkling at the edges. "Of course. One of Lord Ganondorf's more brilliant ideas, don't you think?"

Link stopped dead in his tracks. "What?"

"Well, we had to toughen you up a bit before letting you into the Wasteland, don't you think?" Aveil replied, motioning him forward. "Our King told us that a Hylian boy would be coming to the Fortress, and that we should let you through to the Spirit Temple. But first we had to make sure that you were up to the challenge."

"I don't understand," Link said as he trotted forward to meet her. "Ganondorf knew I was coming? He wanted me to go to the Spirit Temple?"

"He said you were looking for a Shekiah. He was looking for the Shekiah too. He decided he would simply follow you and see if the Shekiah turned up. Clever, no?"

"But…" Link put his hand on Epona's neck and stroked it, trying to rearrange the thoughts in his mind to make some kind of sense. Finding none, he latched onto something else instead. "Nabooru is dead because of him. You know that, don't you?" he demanded, his voice rising.

Now it was Aveil's turn to halt in surprise. "What are you talking about?" she demanded. "The Exalted Nabooru is at the Spirit Temple."

"No she's not! Or maybe her corpse is, if it still exists! Twinrova – Koume and Kotake – killed her! They did it right before my eyes!" Link's blue eyes flashed. "I killed them! I killed them for what they did to Nabooru!" Aveil gripped Epona's halter, eyes wide.

"What's going on here?" A booming male voice crawled up the sandy hill. They turned to see Ganondorf walking leisurely up the path. "Telling stories again, Link?"

"Nabooru was murdered on your order," Link said in a steady voice, trying to conceal the tremble of anger in his body. "If that's untrue, then where is she?"

"At the Spirit Temple, of course," Ganondorf said as he clapped Aveil on the shoulder with a genial smile. He dropped his voice but spoke loud enough for Link to hear. "You know war is hardest on the children, Aveil."

"Oh, of course." Aveil's look of shock changed to a motherly expression and, to Link's astonishment, reached out and pinched him on the cheek. "Don't worry, we'll take good care of him."

She pulled Epona back up the hill, and as Link stood floored, Ganondorf muttered into his ear, "Good luck finding any proof, much less getting my people to accept it." Then he turned on his heel and stalked back down the hill.

Link stood still as stone, then followed Aveil up the hill, rubbing the ear Ganondorf had whispered into red and raw.

* * *

Sparse but comfortable. Link gave his new living quarters a positive assessment, knowing he could have just as easily been put in the same holding pen he had come to know intimately during his quest. Or even in the locked and barred dungeons from which he had rescued the carpenters. His room had a small window, a stone block that served as a table with a pitted metal pitcher on top of it, a bit of mirror hanging above that, and a bed made of interwoven leather straps with a scratchy wool blanket. He fingered the blanket as he sat on the bed, its ends dyed in the characteristic Gerudo blue and red.

Aveil appeared at the doorway. There were no doors, not even a bit of fabric or hide to provide any privacy. Link figured that in a tribe of all women save for one King, it was not considered to be a priority. "I brought you some more comfortable clothes. I figured you're not used to the heat during the day and the cold at night."

"I managed before," Link said, but Aveil paid no attention. Link took the bundle, looking over the soft shoes and baggy pants. "There's no shirt," he objected.

"You're right; poor dear, you'll probably get sunburned." She hurried away before Link could react to this. Sighing, he undressed and then dressed again as quickly as possible. He did feel lighter and less sweaty in these clothes, he thought to himself as he tried out the shoes on his feet. The lack of heavy boots made him feel a little unbalanced, as if he would float off without them.

"Here you go." Aveil handed him a sleeveless shirt, white with red and blue stripes, just like the ones the higher-ranking Gerudo wore. It covered his chest and back, though he doubted it would do much to keep the sun off his shoulders. "Now, if you'll come down with me to the courtyard, we'll issue some Gerudo swords and show you how to use them. We need to get some muscles into those stringy little arms!"

Link examined Aveil's arms from a distance, then looked down at his own. They didn't seem all that different, toned muscle clearly defined on both. Perhaps she was comparing Link to Ganondorf's overblown limbs. Link didn't much like the idea of being built up until his arteries burst.

In the courtyard, another Gerudo handed him a pair of scimitars. One more stood ready with a halberd. "Let's get an idea of your skills with double swords. See if you can hit Nalbina there." Aveil motioned toward the woman with the halberd, who stood in a blocking position.

Link wondered if she was kidding. Nalbina stood like a statue, as if doubtful Link could connect with her standing perfectly still. He gripped both swords, then raised one into the air and brought it down hard.

To his surprise, Nalbina swung the halberd forward and dealt him a blow on the shoulder. Link raised his hands instinctively and managed to shield himself from the next blow, but Nalbina crouched down and swept his feet out from beneath him. Link landed flat on his back, the wind knocked out of him, and the women exploded with laughter.

Link got to his feet quickly, managing a half-grimace, half-smile. This must be some kind of hazing, he figured. All he had to do was try his best until he earned their respect. It might take some time with the new swords, but he'd managed arrows and hammers; surely it wouldn't take long. He took a ready position, swords upraised.

Nalbina flipped the blade down hard, and Link dodged in some consternation as the blade rang on the sandy stone. She whipped it back and forth, exchanging hands, as if attempting to carry off his head. Link blocked neatly, backing up until he felt himself hit the wall. When Nalbina swung again, he rolled forward and to the side, then leaped up and took aim at Nalbina's unprotected back.

Something struck him hard on the side and he reeled, staggering off to one side. His smooth-soled shoes slipped in the grainy sand and he fell hard on his ankle. He staggered to his feet, just as Aveil shouted, "Hold! Oh, Link, did you hurt yourself?"

"What?" He was favoring his ankle, though he'd fought countless battles under the same circumstances. "No, I'm fine." He raised his swords.

Suddenly he found himself in a choke hold, a sinewy arm pressing against his windpipe. He dropped the swords and scrabbled against his attacker as he felt himself lifted several feet off the ground. "That's enough for now," a low, crooning voice said into his ear, and Link stiffened upon recognizing it. "Let Doctor Aveil take care of you, and you can try again later."

Ganondorf dropped Link lightly onto his feet, and Link followed Aveil into the Fortress, rubbing his other ear until both were raw and sore.


	3. The Indignity of Innocence

"Look, just give me the bandages and I'll take care of it myself." Link held out his hand.

Aveil didn't move them from the crude table in his room. She resisted his attempts to pull away as she examined his ankle. "It doesn't look too bad."

"Of course it doesn't!" Link managed to yank his foot away and stood on it. "This is nothing. Do you really think I could have made it to the Spirit Temple and back if something like a twisted ankle could take me out?"

Giving him a long, hard look, Aveil brushed the dust off her hands and stood as well, taking up the bandages into her arms. "Listen, Hylian, you are obviously a person of some importance to Lord Ganondorf. So we are just trying to give you the attention you deserve."

"Do you have to treat me like a child?" Link demanded. "I'm not. I fought your own King…"

Aveil threw her head back and roared with laughter. "Fought Ganondorf? There would be nothing left of you but a stain on the floor!"

"Fine, don't believe it. I don't really care. I'm not here to brag, I couldn't accomplish what I was supposed to anyway…" He flicked his eyes away from Aveil's curious glance. "But please don't treat me like a little boy."

"But you are a boy," Aveil said in all earnestness. "Not little, perhaps, but a boy nonetheless. How can I tell? You look at us with eyes of innocence."

"Hey! I know the people in the castle town didn't speak very highly of the Gerudo, but Nabooru was fair toward me, and aside from Ganondorf I don't have anything against…"

"I appreciate your trust toward our people," Aveil said with an impish grin, "But that is not what I meant." She motioned toward the window. "Don't you find it odd that our tribe is made up almost solely of women?"

He gave a short glance, then shrugged. "I never thought much about it. There aren't any adults among the Kokiri, and there don't seem to be any women among the Gorons. I just figured it was one of the things that made you different from the other races."

"See, you still don't understand what I am saying to you. Though I suppose it's a sign of good character. Do you know why those carpenters came here?"

"They thought they would have fun being thieves…"

"Does this look like fun to you?"

"Well no…I just figured they were…ignorant…"

"Then I will tell you what they meant." Aveil placed her hands on her hips and frowned down at him. "They thought it would be fun because they pictured themselves lounging around all day, eating the food and drink we provided for them, showering them with stolen jewels just because they are men. They thought our race was nothing more than a harem."

"What's 'harem' mean?"

Aveil stopped frowning and broke into a grin. "Your innocence is showing. A harem, as the Hylians define it, is a group of women who exist simply to please men. As entertainers perhaps, but also for sex."

Link's brain ground to a halt as he attempted to process this information. "What, like bees?" he said at last. "Except a man bee with female drones, instead of the other way around?"

Laughing so hard tears came to her eyes, Aveil leaned against the wall until she could speak again. "Ah, I forget, you were Kokiri-raised. So you understand how Farore continues to breathe life into her creations, but you know nothing of human passion. See, you are still a boy. An educated boy, but a boy nonetheless."

Getting impatient with her insults, Link said, "I don't see how acting like a lazy jerk makes me a man. You said that what the carpenters wanted was wrong."

Aveil wiped the tears away. "Ah, you are right, forgive me. I will try to explain the way a Kokiri might understand. Your pretty colored birds in the wood, they are all males, yes? They sing and dance to get the females' attention, and sometimes bring them food, am I correct?"

"Yes…" Link said slowly, wondering where this was going.

"Look at us, Kokiri boy. We are fierce, birds of prey. No man can impress us except for one."

"But the Gerudo go to the castle town to look for boyfriends…"

She gave him a sharp look. "Who told you that?"

Link doubted that she would believe he had heard these words from a stone. He lowered his gaze to the floor and muttered that he didn't remember.

Aveil harrumphed. "It is true, we do when we have no King, or when he is still a boy. We have no choice."

"I'm sorry if I insulted you."

She gave a world-weary sigh, waving away his words with her hand. "It doesn't matter. You will learn."

"Aveil." Link nearly jumped out of his skin when a deep voice barked out from the shadows. "There will be a celebration tomorrow night. You will bring a team out to hunt for leevers. There will be _ataara_ served." Ganondorf's gold eyes shifted to Link. "Bring the boy, if he is well enough."

"Does he always do that?" Link demanded as he put a hand over his racing heart, after Ganondorf's back was turned.

"Hmm? Do what?" Aveil stared at him with genuine curiosity.

"Just pop up out of nowhere like that, without any warning."

"Eh?" She gave him a look of genuine confusion. "He is the king. The fortress, the desert, the Spirit Temple are all his domain. Even the dark places that we fear to tread…no door is closed to him."

Because there aren't any doors, Link added silently. And where they are raised, he merely breaks them down. Long after Aveil left, Link found it difficult to sleep, continually checking for those amber eyes to reappear in his doorway.

* * *

The dawn spread gently over the Fortress, but when the sun hit Link's face, he awakened with a start. He groped for his sword and raised himself on one arm before he realized where he was.

Link settled back down into the bed, a little bit of relief soothing him for the first time in ages. No monsters here, nothing to jump out of a corner and bite him. Just the occasional sound of womens' voices and soft shoes over stone. No threat save one, but Link was too groggy and the bed too inviting for him to consider it for long.

Regardless, he had only a few minutes of luxury before Aveil came calling. "We rise with the sun!" she proclaimed as she ripped the blanket off him. "You've had plenty of time for snoozing!"

Link didn't much care. He doubted Ganondorf would follow them into the desert for something as simple as hunting for leevers. Link dressed and washed his face, and found a group of women waiting for him in the courtyard. Aveil held out a round brown ball. Breakfast, she explained. "It's not much, but it'll keep you going as long as we're out." Link thanked her and nearly broke his teeth on the hard bread.

Finding leevers did not take long. They were barely ten minutes' walk out of the desert gate when the first swarm popped up out of the sand. "Why on earth would you eat these things? They're poisonous," Link pointed out, his scimitar dripping foul-smelling green blood.

"They're a delicacy," Aveil explained with a wink. "We use only the inner flesh, and only a very small amount. Just enough to make the lips tingle, like a first kiss." The other women laughed, and Link had the distinct impression that they were laughing at him.

Nalbina gave him a playful shove. "Your little horse girl, did she ever show you?"

"Do you mean Malon?" Link scowled and turned to their quarry, neatly chopping a leever in two. "I had more important things to think about."

The women laughed and chattered among themselves, but Link's mood blackened as the day wore on. He hadn't expected warriors to obsess over such frivolities. Or was it because they had such a harsh life that they focused on lighthearted things? Regardless, there was only one man they were interested in, and the mere thought made Link's stomach rise up into his throat.

Perhaps this was more hazing. They were teasing him because he would never have to deal with any kind of romantic passion. He was stuck here, for life probably, or at least until Ganondorf died of old age. By that time he would probably be too old himself to grab the attention of any Gerudo.

Link decided he didn't care. He liked Malon, certainly, but that was because she was his friend, just like Saria. As a forest-child and then as a lone adventurer, he hadn't much exposure to love stories, and decided he didn't need them. He'd made a promise to Zelda and intended to keep it.

Zelda. She'd been so friendly when he'd first met her in the courtyard, helping her hatch a scheme that would ultimately fail. She'd been genuinely glad to see him when she revealed who 'Sheik' really was.

And then Ganondorf stepped in and destroyed everything.

For the first time in his life, Link felt genuine resentment. He had made so many sacrifices for Zelda, and here he was, stuck serving the man that had nullified all of them. He ran down the leevers, one after the other, and hacked them down until he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"That's enough, Link!" He looked up to see Aveil's slightly perturbed face. "I told you, we have to cut these a special way, yes? Leave that to the chefs." She called over her shoulder to the others. "All right, we've got our quota! Let's head back!"

They gathered up their catch, leaving one splattered mess for the sand to cover up. The last leever Link had caught.


	4. Multiple Meanings

As the little group returned to the Fortress with their catch, they passed by the Proving Grounds. Link now sorely regretted never going in; his primary quest had been too pressing, and the promise of ice-magic arrows had not been enough to make him stray from his path. But surely, if he had passed all the way through, wouldn't they recognize him as an equal?

"I would like to enter the Proving Grounds after the ceremony is over," Link told Aveil.

"Sorry, kid," she said with a smile. "King's orders."

Link's face flushed. "But I was invited to go in earlier! What changed? Wouldn't the King prefer to have everyone serving under him at the same level?"

Aveil stopped, turned and frowned at him. "Look, kid, I'm not supposed to talk about this, but Lord Ganondorf didn't bring you here with the intention of making you into a Gerudo warrior."

"What are you talking about?" Link demanded. "He said 'there will be plenty of work for your blade in the desert'. What else am I going to use it for?"

"He wouldn't let you in here if you didn't have some basic fighting skill, sure. You'd never survive. But…" Her eyes wandered, unwilling to meet Link's. "It will become clear fairly soon. Have patience." Seeing the scowl on Link's face, she added, "If you want to make yourself more valuable to the tribe, why don't I get you a book of words? You can learn how to speak Gerudo. You are literate, right?"

Link raised his gaze from the dusty ground and his face brightened. "Oh, sure, I can read." He started to explain that Saria had taught him the meaning of "speech drawings", but trailed off before he reached her name.

Aveil didn't seem to notice. "All right then, go back to your quarters and I'll fetch it for you."

He hadn't waited long when Aveil appeared at the doorway at with a small, battered volume. "A relic of more friendly times," she explained with a smile. "Here you will find Hylian words translated into Gerudo, and vice versa. It will be a few hours before the ceremony starts, so why don't you use this to pass the time?"

Link thanked her and flipped through the book. Deciding to look for a way to question the other Gerudo about Nabooru's absence, he looked up "second-in-command". A quick glance told him that learning a new language would be more difficult than he had possibly imagined. The meaning of a word changed depending on the intonation, with numerous relationships drawn between words that made no sense to him.

Depending on how it was spoken, the word for "second-in-command" could have three meanings. The first was as expected, someone one rank down from the King. The second meant a horse, friend, or valuable ally. The third was a derogatory term for a sexual partner, used for Hylian "boyfriends".

This was not going to be easy. He couldn't even ask about Nabooru without unintentionally insulting her, until he heard the three variations of the words enough to imitate them. Link shut the book and stared at the ceiling in frustration, but it wasn't long until he started flipping through it again. He was going to be here a long time, he might as well get started.

He was already absorbed in the book when Aveil came looking for him. "Dinnertime! Hurry up, boy, you never want to keep Gerudo waiting for food!"

By Hylian standards, it was not much of a feast. Each person had a plateful of food, but no second helpings. But Link had often gone without food in the winter with the rest of the inhabitants of the Lost Woods, so a full plate was a feast as far as he was concerned.

He began to sit down at the first setting he could find, but Aveil jerked his arm up and led him over to one of the few faded pillows at the head of the short stone table. She sat on the opposite end. As soon as they sat down, everyone stood up again as Ganondorf entered, and stayed standing until he seated himself at the head of the table.

Link didn't like being this close to Ganondorf, and kept his gaze on Aveil while the King made a long speech entirely in Gerudo. After a while he began to notice some of the women giggling and staring at him. He attempted to catch Aveil's eye but she stared rapturously at her King, not even giving him a glance. Then he heard the word he had been puzzling over –_mataan_.

He cast a panicked glance around the table. Was that the role he was supposed to play? The resident boyfriend to the other Gerudo? But before he could say anything, Ganondorf switched to Hylian.

"Our tribe has gained a valuable ally," he said to the group, and to Link in particular. "It is the purpose of this ceremony to formally invite him as my _mataan_."

Link breathed a sigh of relief. _He said 'ally'._ Though Link didn't understand the purpose of using the Gerudo word again in Hylian speech.

Ganondorf switched back to Gerudo, picking up one of the utensils by his plate and digging into a sizeable portion of the shredded leever, a pulpy whitish mass. This he offered to Link.

The women giggled louder as Link stared at it with a blank expression. Then he turned to Aveil for help, who merely nodded. Grasping at straws, he picked up his own utensil to take the proffered food, but Aveil shook her head. When he gave her a pleading expression, she opened her mouth slightly, demonstrating what he was supposed to do.

Link didn't like the idea of being spoon-fed like a baby, but he did understand the idea of sharing food as a sign of solidarity. He did as he was asked and nearly choked as Ganondorf shoved the unappetizing mush down his throat. The women roared with laughter as Link coughed and made a horrible face.

He could feel his mouth and throat going numb so he quickly shoveled some of the other food into his mouth, hoping that the shredded leever didn't paralyze him. It was halfway through the meal before he was able to get the feeling back in his lips, and he bit his tongue more than once. By that time the rest of the table was ignoring him completely, chatting amongst themselves. At one point Aveil did turn to him and asked him about the food. "Tastes great," he said with an unconvincing smile.

Toward the end of the meal, he stretched and mentioned something about looking forward to sleeping. To his surprise, Aveil laughed. "Oh, there's much more to come! But you'll have to wait until everyone's done eating.

Link tried to conceal his disappointment. He told himself it didn't matter what happened next, as long as it didn't involve any more shredded leever.


	5. Fracture

"Come with me," Aveil said, motioning for Link to follow her as the group began leaving the tables. He did as she asked, wondering how long this would go on before he finally got some sleep. He had never slept much while on his quest, and the ability to do so every night without fear made him look forward to the end of the day.

She led him into an area of the Fortress he had not entered before. Unlike the rest of the structure, the pathways did not have the well-worn slight groove in the middle from countless feet patrolling the halls. He could see some of the carvings in the stone a little better, and the sparse decorations gave way to threadbare tapestries and the occasional sword or helmet hanging on the wall. Link paused briefly to examine one of the swords. It was made in the Hylian style, and so old that he did not recognize the design.

"In here." Link looked up in surprise to see her holding open an actual door. And behind the door was a sunken basin, filled with more water than he had seen anywhere in Gerudo Valley.

"Where does the water come from?" He blurted out, and Aveil laughed.

"A spring in the back of the Fortress," she answered. "That is where we get most of our drinking water. But this is just for bathing."

"Really?! Why didn't you tell me about this before?"

She gave him a look like he should know better. "Water is scarce here. We can't bathe every day, only on special occasions." She pointed to a tiny bar of soap perched on a faded, but neatly folded towel. "When you are finished, come into the next room. You'll know which one because it is the only other one with a door." She left and shut the door behind her.

Link eagerly stripped off his clothing and jumped into the water, then mentally slapped himself for splashing the precious liquid all over the floor. He grabbed the soap and started lathering up both his body and his hair. He hadn't realized until now how his body had cried out for moisture in this dry climate. The soapy bubbles pried out the sandblasted grit in his hair.

So absorbed was he that when he turned back toward the door, he noticed his clothing was missing. "Aveil?" He called out. "Aveil!" Thief or not, what business did she have stealing his clothes? Was this another prank?

Well, if it was a prank, he wasn't going to let them have the pleasure of laughing at him. He decided he might as well soak in the water for a bit longer, since he had no idea when he'd get the chance again. When his skin started becoming wrinkly, he got out of the stone basin and dried himself off with the towel.

Still no Aveil. He wrapped the towel around his hips and opened the door a crack. "Hello?"

His voice echoed down the corridor. Frowning, Link edged out the door and caught sight of the only other door in the Fortress, at the end of the hall and right across from the bath room. Obviously they were pushing him to do something, and he wasn't going to get anywhere unless he played along. He opened the door, expecting to spring some sort of trap.

Nothing happened. He found himself in what appeared to be someone's sleeping quarters, but it was much nicer than any of the ones he had seen. The bed looked big enough to hold five or six people, was made out of carved Hylian wood, and had a blanket made of some smooth material he had never seen before. On the wall hung an ancient map of Hyrule, and several animal pelts had been scattered like rugs across the floor. The window on one side faced Hyrule, and he could the very edge of the green fields. The window on the other side faced the desert, its winds calm for once. A blood-red sunset filled the window.

Suddenly it occurred to him why the room was so nice. This had to be the King's room. Aveil had seen him falling asleep, and decided to play a prank on him. Doubtless she'd expected him to get punted out of the bed and out the window by an angry Ganondorf.

Time to leave. Link leapt for the door, but he felt the doorknob rattle just as he touched it. Link stepped back and put his hands up. "I'm sorry if I'm intruding. Aveil brought me here."

He began speaking even before the door opened, so at first Link sensed nothing wrong when Ganondorf's face registered no surprise at his presence. Link waited for him to move, but he did not, standing there dressed as Link was, only in a towel.

"I'll just be leaving then," Link said, trying to push past him. To his surprise, Ganondorf pushed the door shut and held it.

"No, you'll be staying here."

"Look, Aveil played a trick on me. I didn't have any intention of trespassing into…"

"She brought you here on my order."

Link could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Something very wrong was going on here. "What for?"

The impassive King's face split into a nasty grin. "For you to fulfil your side of the bargain." He shoved Link hard, and the boy stumbled into the side of the bed. He grabbed Link's wrist, and Link tried to pull away, but it was like being caught in a steel trap.

"What bargain?" Link demanded, pulling hard on one arm and raising the other one up in a fist.

Ganondorf grabbed the other wrist. "The bargain I made with the Hylian Princess. I leave her lands alone, and in return, I get her most powerful warrior, to do with what I wish." He pushed the struggling boy down onto the bed.

This made no sense to Link, but he understood he was being attacked. His arms restrained, he bit the King hard on his long nose. As Ganondorf leaped up and pressed his hands to his watering eyes, Link scrambled toward the door.

He yanked on the door but it wouldn't budge. Link searched frantically for a lock or key, and found nothing. He whirled around to see a furious Ganondorf leaping toward him, and he dodged out of the way just in time.

Ganondorf placed himself in front of the door, with an expression that clearly stated the only way out was through him. Both of them had lost their towels in the struggle and Link scanned the room for something he could use, to either defend himself or strike Ganondorf's exposed body. His eye fell on a halberd hanging on the wall; Ganondorf followed his gaze and reached the halberd first.

To Link's surprise, he didn't swing the weapon. Instead, he dropped it in front of the door and stood in front of both. "You're not leaving this room until I get what I want, Hero," he said in a voice more frightening than any of the shouting he had heard in the castle. "If I can't break you in a fight, then I'll just find another way."

Link didn't wait to ponder the meaning behind that statement. Instead, his eye fell on the window and he sprinted toward it. He heard a shout behind him, could hear the angry King's heavy breathing as he took up the pursuit. Link didn't even bother to stand on the window frame; he leaped clear from the floor out the window.

The King's room was three stories up. When Link had the Triforce of Courage, he would have suffered little more than a sharp pain in the ankles. But jumping out so high and at such speed, with no clothing to cushion him, he had no control over how he hit the ground. As his left leg connected, he felt an explosive pain and heard a sickening crack. He doubled over on his side in agony.

One of the guards came running up. "Great Goddesses, it's raining men! What happened?" Link heard her take in a sharp breath as she caught sight of his leg. "Don't move! You're badly hurt. I will get a splint for you." As she took off he could see what made her gasp; a jagged piece of bright white bone poked out of the bloody flesh.

He did as she asked, biting his lip as stabbing pains lanced through his body. A few more Gerudo gathered around him, one bringing a torch to both light the injury and ward off the oncoming nighttime chill.

Suddenly Link recognized footfalls coming toward him. The King appeared in the doorway, wearing pants but little else. He moved toward Link, who attempted to scramble out of the way. The guard with the splint bent down, and Link grabbed her halberd.

"Stand back!" Link ordered, the blade pointed at Ganondorf.

The King sneered at him. "Do you really think you can fight in that condition?"

Link's gaze flickered to the numerous other Gerudo standing around, staring at both him and their King in puzzlement. He decided to take a gamble. Raising himself up as well as he could, he pressed the edge of the halberd against this own neck. "I said stay back!"

"What's going on?" Aveil's voice pierced through the twilight. "Are you two having a lover's spat already?" The laugh on her face and in her voice vanished as she saw the halberd and the broken bone. "Great Goddess, what happened?"

"Keep away!" Link shouted at Ganondorf. Aveil looked back and forth between them in surprise.

"Have you been playing rough?"Aveil demanded. "For Din's sake, he's just a boy."

Through a haze of pain, Link could see that Aveil and the others had not expected Ganondorf to hurt him. Just as they did not believe he had killed Nabooru. Without Power, Ganondorf was subject to the will of his people. And he had to keep up this façade if he wanted them to continue to revere him as King. Link waited.

"Aveil," Ganondorf said at last, "See to Link's injuries. Make sure he is comfortable. It will take a while for a break like that to heal. And a while for him to build up his strength afterward." He bowed slightly. "I apologize, I'm used to sparring with these ladies." Amid laughter from the other Gerudo, he turned and left.

"Good heavens." Aveil's smile returned. "That's enough excitement for one night, don't you think?"

Link didn't answer. He had already blacked out.


	6. Future on Hold

_Will I wake with a life to remember  
Now I'm frozen and cold  
I am left alone  
With an empty soul  
As I put the future on hold_

-Amaranthe, "Future On Hold"

Pain. The first sense that Link regained was a dull, throbbing pain, growing in intensity as he inched back toward consciousness. Half of him wanted to sink back into darkness; the other half ran ahead in panic, instinctually fearing the all-too-common possibility of being stomped, bitten, or pierced to death by some monster.

Link's eyes flew open. He could see a stone ceiling above him, and for one brief moment he feared he had awakened inside a tomb. Then he blinked and realized that he could only see the stone because of the sunlight streaming in through the window.

He attempted to rise, but could not move even a finger. He exhaled from the effort with an inarticulate grunt, and suddenly a face popped into his vision.

"I see you're finally awake!" Aveil greeted him cheerfully. "Din above, you certainly gave yourself a bad break. Let's not go jumping out of windows anymore, hmm?"

Link strained to focus on the leg that had been propped up onto the blankets. It looked swollen to twice its size, though that might have been accented by the number of bandages and wooden splints. "The healers had a hard time of it, let me tell you. That leg will never be as good as your other one."

He felt a wave of panic. "Red potion, do you have any?"

She turned and gave him a look that made him flinch ever so slightly. "We don't go into the Shekiah's town," Aveil replied with a dark undertone in her voice. But she reverted back to the cheerful face just as quickly. "It's hard to repair a leg when the bone tears through the muscle like that. But we have good healers, and it's not so bad that it will cripple you."

Link attempted to raise himself slightly, but shooting pains in his leg stopped him. "What am I going to do?" he asked no one in particular.

"Oh, don't worry, Link. I spoke with him last night and he's sorry he scared you, though of course he'll never say it in those exact words. He promised to be gentler next time."

Her words flowed over Link and he stared blankly at them, as if attempting to decipher the letters carved into the Spirit Temple. He turned his head to look her in the eyes. "What in the name of Nayru are you talking about?"

Aveil patted his hand. "I realize this might seem strange to a Hylian. It's normal for us Gerudo, to have a sexual relationship with another woman. Because there just aren't that many men around, do you see? So by default when one of us falls in love, it's going to be with another woman…"

"_Love?!_" Link half-raised himself into a sitting position, ignoring the stabbing pains that threatened to punch him back into unconsciousness. "Is that what you think is going on here?"

She gave him a blank look. "Well, of course. That was the whole point of his bringing you here." She gave a contented little sigh. "Just like one of our fireside tales…two warriors, drawn together by a feud between nations, slowly fall for each other…"

Link slammed both his fists onto the blankets so hard that Aveil flinched. "Is that what he told you? Do you really believe such a pathetic lie!? There is no love here. He brought me here to…to…" Link couldn't even bring himself to put words to Ganondorf's intent. "I hate him! Hate him, do you hear me? He killed Nabooru! And my friend Saria! And Darunia and Ruto and Impa! Hate HATE **HATE**!" He shouted the last word so loudly his whole body jerked, and tears sprang to his eyes from the pain in his leg.

"Please, please calm down," Aveil said in a soothing voice as he lay back down, grimacing. "King Ganondorf respects you, don't you see? He would never do anything knowingly to hurt you. Poor boy, who told you that he did these things?"

"I'm not crazy," he said, over and over again. "I'm not crazy. You don't know what he did, you didn't see…"

"Shush, now. He won't summon you to his room while you're injured, so you can relax. And you'll be in that splint for a good month."

Link breathed a sigh of relief.

"But I told him he'll just have to try extra hard now to earn back your trust." She smiled. "How sweet…I know he has it in him. The more time you spend with him, the closer you'll grow." All the color drained out of Link's face as she walked to the door. "It's dinner time, so I'll get you something to eat, all right?"

Link stared incredulously at her retreating back. _He really does have all of them brainwashed…what in the name of the Gods am I going to do?_

Suddenly he remembered the Gossip Stone Zelda had given him. After a few minutes of delicate maneuvering, he managed to pull it from his pack at the side of the bed. He accepted the hot stew Aveil gave him without a word, ate quickly, and waited until she left.

He stared at the stone, unsure how to use it. "Zelda," he said softly. "Zelda, are you there?"

A few tense seconds ticked by. "Link, I hear you," Zelda's voice came through, quiet but clear. Link rejoiced at the sound.

"Princess Zelda, I need your help. Ganondorf, he…" Link flushed with humiliation, trying to explain what was happening. "He's trying to…"

"I know," she said softly.

"You do?" Link felt a wave of relief at not needing to get into details. "So what should I do?"

Silence. It was a conundrum, he knew, even someone as wise as Zelda might have to…

"There is nothing you can do," Zelda said. "I'm sorry, Link."

"What? No, just think, Zelda! There must be a way…"

"If there was, I would have thought of it before," Zelda said in a strained voice. "I…am truly sorry for putting you in this position, Link. But these were the terms…and for the sake of everyone, for all of Hyrule…"

"Listen, I know it's hard, but…" Suddenly a blinding flash of rage bit through his body as he realized what she was saying. "Wait, you KNEW? You knew this was what he wanted?!"

"Link, I…"

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Because I knew you would refuse!" Even in his seething anger he could hear the panic in her voice. "What could I do, with the future of all of Hyrule at stake? You had already put your life on the line for us before, I thought…"

"You thought I would just roll over and take it?" Link roared, surprised at the strength buried in the bitterness in his voice. "You used me! I trusted you! I trusted you, Zelda! I trusted you and served you through countless nightmares! Is this my punishment for failing? Do you really think anyone deserves this?!"

"I'm sorry!" He could hear Zelda crying but it just fueled his anger. "I didn't do it to punish you! I didn't want to agree to this, do you understand? There was no other way! He threatened to continue to lay siege to Hyrule if I refused!"

"Oh, it's fine as long as the country that _I_ saved for you is safe, so it doesn't matter how I suffer? You should have told me, Zelda! I went into this blind! He tried to jump me last night, and I broke my leg! I'm crippled for life! I'll never be able to fight him again! Do you understand? You put me in this position and _I can't defend myself!_"

His anger finally erupted and he hurled the Gossip Stone against the far wall. It cracked in two and fell to the ground, silent.

Link buried his face into his trembling hands. "Great Goddesses, what am I going to do?" He sat there for several minutes, listening to the sound of his own quick breaths as they slowly returned to normal. Finally he raised his head and stared at the broken Stone. Half of him wanted to repair it somehow, and plead again with Zelda. The other half wanted to grind it into powder.

He turned to the wall, his mind in turmoil. _It's no different than before,_ he thought to himself._ No matter how many people you might befriend, when push comes to shove you're always alone._

_But you're no worse off than before. Your quest just isn't finished yet, that's all. It won't be finished until Ganondorf is dead._

Link examined the bandages around the leg, gingerly touching the splint. He cast his gaze around the room and it fell upon a stone jar of water on a block that served as a table. He leaned over and picked it up, hefting it in his hand.

_ If my leg is weaker, I'll just have to make sure everything else is stronger._

One month for his leg to heal and for him to build up the rest of his body. One month of Ganondorf attempting to "earn his trust", waiting for the next time he could pounce without interference from the rest of the Gerudo.

_Farore, give me strength._


End file.
